Walking stick

ABSTRACT

Provided is a walking stick having a pole configured by a plurality of connecting pipes. The walking stick includes: an upper connecting pipe; and a lower connecting pipe inserted into the upper connecting pipe, wherein first and second through-holes are provided in both sides of the lower connecting pipe at opposing positions to each other, first and second button members are slidably inserted into the first and the second through-holes, respectively, a spring for elastically supporting the first and the second button members in a radial direction is provided inside the first and the second button members, and third and fourth through-holes are provided in the upper connecting pipe at positions corresponding to the first and the second through-holes of the lower connecting pipe so that the first and the second button members are moved in and out through the first to the fourth through-holes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to Korean Utility Model Application No.20-2008-0015410, filed on Nov. 19, 2008, and all the benefits accruingtherefrom under 35 U.S.C. §119, the contents of which in its entiretyare herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

This disclosure relates to a walking stick having a pole configured byconnecting a plurality of connecting pipes, and more particularly, to awalking stick capable of actively managing a malfunction of a lockingdevice and minimizing deformation of connecting pipes and the lockingdevice by distributing impacts.

2. Description of the Related Art

In general, a walking stick is used by many people for climbing andsports activities or by patients for walking. The walking stick includesa pole and a handle provided to an end portion of the pole. The pole isgenerally configured by connecting a plurality of connection pipes so asto be folded in a longitudinal direction for convenience of storage anduse.

An example of the walking stick is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the walking stick includes a handle 2that comes in various shapes for different purposes, a pole 4configuring a body, and a sharp head portion 6 contacting with theground.

The pole 4 is configured by connecting a plurality of connecting pipes10, 20, and 30 in a longitudinal direction so as to be folded, andlocking devices 40 and 40 a are provided for connecting portions to lockthe walking stick with a maximum length or release the locking in orderto fold the walking stick.

More specifically, into the first connecting pipe 10 the secondconnecting pipe 20 having a smaller diameter is inserted, into thesecond connecting pipe 20 the third connecting pipe 30 having a smallerdiameter is inserted, and the locking devices 40 and 40 a are providedfor the connecting portion between the first and the second connectingpipes 10 and 20 and the connecting portion between the second and thethird connecting pipes 20 and 30, respectively. As needed, walkingsticks having a variety of lengths may be manufactured by increasing ordecreasing the number of the connecting pipes 10, 20, 30.

In the connecting portions between the upper connecting pipe and thelower connecting pipe, that is, between the lower end of the firstconnecting pipe 10 and the upper end of the second connecting pipe 20,and between the lower end of the second connecting pipe 20 and the upperend of the third connecting pipe 30, vibration prevention members 51,52, 61, and 62 are provided to prevent vibration while using the walkingstick.

The locking devices 40 and 40 a includes buttons 41 and 41 a and springs42 and 42 a. The button 41 and the spring 42 lock the first and thesecond connecting pipes 10 and 20, and the button 41 a and the spring 42a lock the second and the third connecting pipes 20 and 30.

FIG. 2 illustrates inner and outer shapes of the locking devices. InFIG. 1, the connecting pipe on the upper side is referred to as theupper connecting pipe, and the connecting pipe on the lower side isreferred to as the lower connecting pipe. The locking devices 40 and 40a technically have the same configuration although they have differencesizes according to the diameters of the connecting pipes. Thus, only onethereof will be described with reference to the figure.

The button 41 of the locking device is moved along with the lowerconnecting pipe 20 while a head portion thereof is inserted into a hole21 formed on the lower connecting pipe 20, and is inserted into a hole11 of the upper connecting pipe 10 at the last point of the extensionoperation, thereby locking the upper and the lower connecting pipes 10and 20.

During the use of the walking stick, there may be a case where thewalking stick cannot be used anymore due to various problems.

For example, during the use of the walking stick, the sharp head portion6 (see FIG. 1) comes in contact with the ground repeatedly, andsometimes, a user leans on the walking stick, so that irregular impactsare repeatedly applied to the connecting pipes. The impact is directlytransmitted to the locking device or to the connecting pipe through thelocking device, and due to the impacts, many portions between thelocking devices and the connecting pipes are damaged as the walkingstick is used.

That is, as illustrated in FIG. 2, impacts are applied to the lowerconnecting pipe 20 and the button 41 in the directions shown by dashedarrows, and impacts are applied to the upper connecting pipe 10 in thedirection shown by the solid arrow. Here, the impact applied to thelower connecting pipe 20 is directly applied to the hole 11 of the upperconnecting pipe 10 through the button 41.

Therefore, when impacts are repeatedly exerted, the holes 11 and 21 ofthe upper and the lower connecting pipes 10 and 20 may be damaged in thelongitudinal direction of the walking stick as illustrated in FIG. 2, orthe button 41 may be deformed. In this case, gaps between the button 41and the holes 11 and 21 grow in size and the connecting pipes 10 and 20clatter and move vertically, so that the walking stick cannot be usednormally, or the walking stick cannot be used anymore.

In addition, due to unexpected situations such as a case where a foreignmaterial penetrates into the button or a case where the hole into whichthe button is inserted is deformed by a sharp impact, the operations ofthe spring 42 and the button 41 may be problematic, and the walkingstick itself may not be used anymore.

If such a situation occurs during mountain climbing or sports activitiesor when a patient walks with the help of the walking stick without acarer, the user may be confronted with a dangerous situation becausehe/she cannot use the walking stick.

It is thought that the damage of the connecting pipe and the lockingdevice due to the impacts is caused by the concentration of all impactsonto the single button as the single button is provided for the singleconnecting portion.

In addition, a problem in that the walking stick cannot be used becausethe locking device malfunctions and does not operate is caused by theconfiguration in which only the single locking device is provided forthe single connecting portion. Therefore, when a problem occurs in thelocking device, there is no replacement, and the walking stick itselfcannot be used.

SUMMARY

This disclosure provide a walking stick capable of preventing damage anddeformation of connecting pipes and locking devices by increasing areasreceiving impacts and distributing the impacts, and preparing formalfunctions and deformation of the locking device by compensating for aproblem in which a single locking device does not operate for a singleconnecting portion.

In one aspect, there is provided a walking stick, including: an upperconnecting pipe; and a lower connecting pipe inserted into the upperconnecting pipe, wherein first and second through-holes are provided inboth sides of the lower connecting pipe at opposing positions to eachother, first and second button members are slidably inserted into thefirst and the second through-holes, respectively, a spring forelastically supporting the first and the second button members in aradial direction is provided inside the first and the second buttonmembers, and third and fourth through-holes are provided in the upperconnecting pipe at positions corresponding to the first and the secondthrough-holes of the lower connecting pipe so that the first and thesecond button members are moved in and out through the first to thefourth through-holes.

An inner sleeve may be joined to an upper portion of the lowerconnecting pipe, and the inner sleeve may be provided with anaccommodating area for accommodating the first and the second buttonmembers.

In another aspect, there is provided a walking stick, including: anupper connecting pipe; and a lower connecting pipe inserted into theupper connecting pipe, wherein a first through-hole is formed topenetrate one side of the lower connecting pipe, and a secondthrough-hole is formed to penetrate the other side of the lowerconnecting pipe at a position that is not opposed to the firstthrough-hole, first and second button members are slidably inserted intothe first and second through-holes in an opposite direction, first andsecond springs for elastically supporting the first and the secondbutton members respectively in an outer radial direction are providedinside the lower connecting pipe, and the upper connecting pipe isprovided with third and fourth through-holes at positions correspondingto the first and the second through-holes of the lower connecting pipeso that the first button member is moved in and out through the firstand the third through-holes and the second button member is moved in andout through the second and the fourth through-holes.

An inner sleeve may be joined to an upper portion of the lowerconnecting pipe, and the inner sleeve may be provided with a firstaccommodating area for accommodating the first button member and asecond accommodating area for accommodating the second button member.

In the walking stick according to the embodiment, since the two buttonmembers are provided in the opposite direction and are connected to thelower connecting pipe and the upper connecting pipe at the same timeduring locking, the impact is distributed and the surface pressuresapplied to each button member and each through hole are decreased sothat the deformations of the button member and the through-hole(connecting pipe) can be minimized.

In addition, as the two locking devices (button members) complement witheach other, in the case where one of them is damaged, the walking stickcan be used continuously using the other one so that an emergencysituation may be prevented from taking place or a user can deal with theemergency situation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the disclosedexemplary embodiments will be more apparent from the following detaileddescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of an existingwalking stick;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view illustrating a locking device portion of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a locking deviceportion according to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a transverse cross-sectional view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating a state where locking is released bypushing a button member in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a transverse cross-sectional view of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a locking deviceportion according to another embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ofFIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B ofFIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state where locking is released bypushing a button member in FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C ofFIG. 10; and

FIG. 12 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line D-D ofFIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary embodiments now will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodimentsare shown. This disclosure may, however, be embodied in many differentforms and should not be construed as limited to the exemplaryembodiments set forth therein. Rather, these exemplary embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and willfully convey the scope of this disclosure to those skilled in the art.In the description, details of well-known features and techniques may beomitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the presented embodiments.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of this disclosure.As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. Furthermore, the use of the terms a, an, etc. does not denotea limitation of quantity, but rather denotes the presence of at leastone of the referenced item. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises” and/or “comprising”, or “includes” and/or “including” whenused in this specification, specify the presence of stated features,regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, butdo not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/orgroups thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art. It will be further understood that terms,such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should beinterpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning inthe context of the relevant art and the present disclosure, and will notbe interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expresslyso defined herein.

In the drawings, like reference numerals in the drawings denote likeelements. The shape, size and regions, and the like, of the drawing maybe exaggerated for clarity.

In the following exemplary embodiments, configurations of onlyconnecting portions of connecting pipes composing a pole and a lockingdevice are illustrated and described, and the illustration anddescription of a handle or a sharp head portion will be omitted. Inaddition, although there are two connecting portions and two lockingdevices in the configuration having three or more connecting pipes, theconfigurations of the connecting portions and the locking devices arethe same.

Embodiment 1

FIGS. 3, 4, 5, and 6 illustrate a locking device portion according to anembodiment. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view, FIG. 4 is a transversecross-sectional view, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a state inwhich locking is released by pushing a button member, and FIG. 6 is atransverse cross-sectional view of FIG. 5.

As illustrated In FIGS. 3 and 4, into an upper connecting pipe 100 alower connecting pipe 200 having a smaller diameter is inserted.

First and second through-holes 202 and 204 are provided in both sides ofthe lower connecting pipe 200 in a transverse direction (radialdirection), and first and second button members 510 and 520 are insertedinto the first and second through-holes 202 and 204 so as to slide inthe opposite directions. A single spring 600 is provided inside thefirst and second button members 510 and 520 so as to elastically supportthe first and second members 510 and 520 in the radial direction.

Third and fourth through-holes 102 and 104 are provided in the upperconnecting pipe 100 at positions opposed to the first and the secondthrough-holes 202 and 204 of the lower connecting pipe 200, so that thefirst button member 510 is moved in and out through the first and thethird trough-holes 202 and 102, and the second button member 520 ismoved in and out through the second and the fourth through-holes 204 and104.

In the case of a walking stick having an inner sleeve 400 joined to anupper portion of the lower connecting pipe 200 as in this embodiment, anaccommodating area 401 is provided in the inner sleeve 400. Theaccommodating area 401 slidably accommodates the first and the secondbutton members 510 and 520 and guides the first and the second button510 and 520 to enable a more stable sliding movement.

An outer sleeve 300 corresponding to the inner sleeve 400 may beprovided. The outer sleeve 300 is provided on a lower end of the upperconnecting pipe 100 and comes in close contact with the lower connectingpipe 200 to prevent vibration.

In the walking stick according to the embodiment, the two button members510 and 520 are provided in the opposite direction, and the two buttonmembers 510 and 520 are supported by the single spring 600. Asillustrated in FIG. 3, during locking, the two button members 510 and520 simultaneously protrude through the through-holes 202 and 204 of thelower connecting pipe 200 and the through-holes 102 and 104 of the upperconnecting pipe 100. Therefore, areas where the button members 510 and520 and the connecting pipes 100 and 200 come in contact with becometwice the area of an existing case, and the surface pressure applied toeach individual button member 510 or 520 and each individualthrough-hole 102, 104, 202, or 204 is reduced to half.

Therefore, the impact exerted on the walking stick in the longitudinaldirection is distributed to the two button members 510 and 520 and thetwo through-holes 102 and 202 or 104 and 204, so that loads applied onthe button members 510 and 520 and the through-holes 101 and 202 and 104and 204 and deformation of the button members 510 and 520 and thethrough-holes 101 and 202 and 104 and 204 may be significantly reduced.

In addition, even when a problem occurs in one of the button membersduring use, for example, even when a situation occurs where one of thethrough-holes 102 and 104 of the upper connecting pipe 100 is deformedduring use and the corresponding button member cannot pass therethrough,the walking stick can still be used if the remaining one operatesproperly.

During the use of the walking stick according to the embodiment, a statewhere the locking of the connecting pipes is released is illustrated inFIGS. 5 and 6. When head portions of the first and the second buttonmembers 510 and 520 protruding in both directions are pushed inwards bya thumb and an index finger at the same time through the through-holes102 and 104 of the upper connecting pipe 100, the locking is releasedand the lower connecting pipe 200 can be moved to be folded.

Embodiment 2

FIGS. 7 to 9 and FIGS. 10 to 12 are enlarged views of a locking deviceportion according to another embodiment. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectionalview, FIG. 8 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the lineA-A of FIG. 7, FIG. 9 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken alongthe line B-B of FIG. 7, FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state wherelocking is released by pushing a button member in FIG. 7, FIG. 11 is atransverse cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C of FIG. 10, andFIG. 12 is a transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line D-D ofFIG. 10.

As compared with the above-described embodiment, in the walking stickaccording to this embodiment, two button members are spaced from eachother to improve convenience for use and stability for operations.

As illustrated in FIGS. 7 to 9, in a lower connecting pipe 250, firstand second through-holes 252 and 254 are provided to be opposed to eachother at a predetermined interval in a longitudinal direction. That is,the first through-hole 252 penetrates one side of the lower connectingpipe 250, and the second through-hole 254 penetrates the other side ofthe connecting pipe 250 at a position that is not opposed to the firstconnecting pipe 252.

The first through-hole 252 is provided with first button member 550 andfirst spring 611, and the second through-hole 254 is provided withsecond button member 560 and second spring 612.

Third and fourth through-holes 152 and 154 are provided in an upperconnecting pipe 150 at a predetermined interval in the longitudinaldirection. The third and fourth through-holes 152 and 154 are formed atpositions corresponding to the first and the second through-holes 252and 254 of the lower connecting pipe 250, and the first and secondbutton members 550 and 560 are moved in and out therethrough for lockingand unlocking.

In addition, in a case where an inner sleeve 450 is provided in an upperportion of the lower connecting pipe 250, first and second accommodatingareas 451 and 452 are formed at positions corresponding to the first andsecond through-holes 252 and 254 in the inner sleeve 450. The first andsecond button member 550 and 560 are slidably accommodated in the firstand the second accommodating areas 451 and 452.

In the walking stick having the above-mentioned configuration accordingto this embodiment, the first button member 550 and the first spring 611are disposed independently of the second button member 560 and thesecond spring 612, so that the button members 550 and 560 are allowed tohave large lengths. Therefore, as illustrated in FIGS. 7 to 9, lengthsof guide flange portions 552 and 562 of the button member 550 and 560are allowed to be large, and accordingly the button members 550 and 560are not inclined and may be moved stably.

In addition, according to this embodiment, since a single spring 611 or612 mates with one button member 550 or 560, the springs 611 and 612 areallowed to have large lengths and sufficient compression margin lengthcan be guaranteed. Therefore, smaller force is needed to push the buttonmember 550 or 560 as compared with the above-described embodiment.

A state where locking of the connecting pipes is released during the useof the walking stick according to this embodiment is illustrated inFIGS. 10 to 12. When the two button members 550 and 560 spaced from eachother in the longitudinal direction of the walking stick are pushedinwards by a thumb and an index finger or by both hands at the same timethrough the through-holes 152 and 154 of the upper connecting pipe 150,the lower connecting pipe 250 can be moved to be folded.

While the exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, it willbe understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in formand details may be made thereto without departing from the spirit andscope of this disclosure as defined by the appended claims.

In addition, many modifications can be made to adapt a particularsituation or material to the teachings of this disclosure withoutdeparting from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intendedthat this disclosure not be limited to the particular exemplaryembodiments disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying outthis disclosure, but that this disclosure will include all embodimentsfalling within the scope of the appended claims.

1. A walking stick comprising: an upper connecting pipe; and a lowerconnecting pipe inserted into the upper connecting pipe, wherein firstand second through-holes are provided in both sides of the lowerconnecting pipe at opposing positions to each other, first and secondbutton members are slidably inserted into the first and the secondthrough-holes, respectively, a spring for elastically supporting thefirst and the second button members in a radial direction is providedinside the first and the second button members, and third and fourththrough-holes are provided in the upper connecting pipe at positionscorresponding to the first and the second through-holes of the lowerconnecting pipe so that the first and the second button members aremoved in and out through the first to the fourth through-holes.
 2. Thewalking stick according to claim 1, wherein an inner sleeve is joined toan upper portion of the lower connecting pipe, and the inner sleeve isprovided with an accommodating area for accommodating the first and thesecond button members.
 3. A walking stick, comprising: an upperconnecting pipe; and a lower connecting pipe inserted into the upperconnecting pipe, wherein a first through-hole is formed to penetrate oneside of the lower connecting pipe, and a second through-hole is formedto penetrate the other side of the lower connecting pipe at a positionthat is not opposed to the first through-hale, first and second buttonmembers are slidably inserted into the first and second through-holes inopposite directions, first and second springs for elastically supportingthe first and the second button members respectively in an outer radialdirection are provided inside the lower connecting pipe, and the upperconnecting pipe is provided with third and fourth through-holes atpositions corresponding to the first and the second through-holes of thelower connecting pipe so that the first button member is moved in andout through the first and the third through-holes and the second buttonmember is moved in and out through the second and the fourththrough-holes.
 4. The walking stick according to claim 3, wherein aninner sleeve is joined to an upper portion of the lower connecting pipe,and the inner sleeve is provided with a first accommodating area foraccommodating the first button member and a second accommodating areafor accommodating the second button member.